Continuous door column and door system for silos

ABSTRACT

FRAME STRUCTIRE FOR MOUNTING IN A DOOR OPENING THROUGH A SILO WALL EXTENDING VERTICALLY FOR THE GREATER PORTION OF THE HEIGHT OF THE SILOI COMPRISING VERTICALLY EXTENDING LATERALLY SPACED LONGITUDINAL FRAME MEMBERS CONNECTED BY VERTICAL SPACED HORIZONTAL CROSS FRAME MEMBERS AND OPPOSED LONGITUDINAL STOP FLANGES ON THE LONGITUDINAL FRAME MEMBERS. A PLURALITY OF REMOVABLE DOOR SECTIONS ARE DISPOSED IN END-TO-END ABUTTING ENGAGEMENT AND HELD AGAINST THE STOP FLANGES BY WEDGE ELEMENTS ENGAGING THE CROSS FRAME MEMBERS.

R. F. KOSER Sept. 20, 1971 CONTINUOUS DOOR COLUMN AND DOOR SYSTEM FOR SILOS Original Filed Aug. 4, 1969 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. ROBERT F K055? BY M A T To RNE Y5 FIG. I

CONTINUOUS DOOR COLUMN AND DOOR SYSTEM FOR SILOS Original Filea Aug. 4, 1969 R. F. KOSER Sept. 20, 1911 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. ROBERT F K 055,?

A 7' TO/PNE Y5 United States Patent 3,605,342 CONTINUOUS DOOR COLUMN AND DOOR SYSTEM FOR SILOS Robert F. Koser, Almeria, Wis, assignor of fractional part interest to Ralph H. Koser, Almeria, Wis. Continuation of applicaticn Ser. No. 847,079, Aug. 4, 1969. This application July 27, 1970, Ser. No. 58,306 Int. Cl. Ec 21/02; Etlfib 3/22 US. Cl. 49464 14 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Frame structure for mounting in a door opening through a silo wall extending vertically for the greater portion of the height of the silo comprising vertically extending laterally spaced longitudinal frame members connected by vertically spaced horizontal cross frame members and opposed longitudinal stop flanges on the longitudinal frame members. A plurality of removable door sections are disposed in end-to-end abutting engagement and held against the stop flanges by wedge elements engaging the cross frame members.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application is a continuation of my copending application for United States Letters Patent, Ser. No. 847,- 079, filed Aug. 4, 1969, and entitled Continuous Door Column and Door System for Silos.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Silos having continuous door openings normally closed by a plurality of removable door sections are known, examples of these being found in US. Pats. Nos. 1,163,508, 1,232,604 and 2,834,063. In at least some of these, the door sections engage the inner wall surfaces of the silo adjacent the opening thereof, or the inner surfaces of door frame structure. These door sections must be moved inwardly for removal from the opening, often against pressure of silage thereagainst, so that the silage may be discharged through the door opening. Such removal of the door sections is diflicult, particularly during the winter months when the silage becomes frozen.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The continuous door system of this invention comprises a door frame for a vertically extending opening through a silo Wall, and a plurality of door sections removably mounted in the door frame in superposed end-to-end abutting engagement. The door frame includes a pair of laterally spaced longitudinally vertical side frame members having a pair of longitudinally extending stop flanges thereon and a plurality of vertically spaced horizontal cross frame members rigidly secured at their opposite ends to the side frame members in laterally outwardly spaced relation to the stop flanges. Each of the cross frame members is disposed substantially at the level of the abutting upper and lower ends of a diiferent adjacent pair of the door sections, each door section having a wedge element thereon engaging an adjacent cross frame member to move its respective door section laterally inwardly into sealing engagement with the stop flanges, responsive to movement of the door section into end -to-end abutting engagement with an underlying door section. The upper and lower ends of each door section are rabbeted to provide shiplap sealing connections between adjacent door sections.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a view in side elevation of a conventional silo Patented Sept. 20, 1971 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A conventional silo, indicated generally at 1, is shown as having a vertically disposed generally cylindrical peripheral Wall 2 and a dome-shaped top or roof 3 suitably mounted on the upper end of the peripheral wall 2. The top or roof 3 is fabricated from sheet metal or other suitable material, the peripheral wall 2 being monolithic or built up from pre-cast staves as desired, in the usual manner The peripheral wall 2 is reinforced by a plurality of vertically spaced circumferentially extending hoops or bands 4- suitably anchored to the peripheral wall 2, as indicated at 4'. As above indicated, the silo thus far described is of conventional construction, further detailed showing and description thereof being omitted in the interest of brevity.

For the purpose of accommodating the continuous door column and door system of this invention, the peripheral wall 2 is formed to provide an opening 5 therethrough which extends vertically for substantially the full vertical length of the peripheral wall 2 from closely adjacent the bottom of the silo to the top or root 3 thereof. The door column and door system comprises a door frame 6 that includes a pair of elongated side frame members 7 made from structural channel iron or similar material, and a plurality of vertically spaced horizontal cross frame members 8, preferably made from structural angle iron and welded or otherwise rigidly secured at their opposite ends to the side frame members 7. As shown particularly in FIG. 4, the side frame members 7 are disposed at opposite sides of the opening 5, having inner flanges 9 disposed substantially even with the inner surface or lining 10 of the peripheral wall 2, and outer flanges 11 disposed in radially outwardly spaced relation to the outer surafce 12 of the peripheral silo wall 2.. A pair of opposed stop flanges 13 are welded or otherwise rigidly secured to the side frame member 7 adjacent to the inner flanges 9 thereof, the stop flanges 13 extending substantially the full length of the side frame members 7, the cross frame members 8 being disposed in predetermined outwardly spaced relationship to the stop flanges 13.

As shown particularly in FIG. 2, each of the cross frame members 8 is formed to provide angularly displaced flanges 14 that cooperate to define a corner edge 15 that is directed inwardly toward the stop flanges 13 and outwardly spaced therefrom. Also as shown particularly, in FIG. 2, the side frame members 7 each define a plurality of longitudinally spaced openings or slots 16 adjacent opposite ends of the cross frame members 8, for reception of the hoops or bands 4.

The door system of this invention further includes a plurality of flat rectangular door sections 17 that are removably mounted between the side frame members 7 in superposed end-to-end abutting engagement. The door sections 17 are preferably made from Wood or other suitable material, and are rabbeted at their upper and lower ends to provide tongue elements 18 and 19 respectively, each tongue element 18 cooperating with the tongue element 19 of an adjacent door section 17 to provide a shiplap connection between adjacent door sections 17 when the door sections 17 are disposed in superposed abutting end-to-end engagement, see particularly FIG. 2.

Also, as therein shown, as well as in FIG. 4, the opposite side edge portions of the door section 17 are disposed to engage the stop flanges 13 to limit movement of the door sections 17 inwardly of the silo wall 2, and to provide a seal against leakage of silage from the interior of the silo.

For the purpose of releasably holding the door sections 17 in engagement with the stop flanges 13, each door section 17 is provided with a wedge element 20 rigidly secured to the lower end portion of its respective door element 17 and projecting downwardly beyond its respective tongue element 19. Each wedge element 20 is formed to provide a downwardly and inwardly sloping or tapering surface 21 that is adapted to slidably engage the corner edge 15 of an adjacent one of the cross frame members 8 to move the lower end portion of its respective door section 17 into engagement with the stop flanges 13, when its respective door section 17 is moved downwardly into abutting end-to-end engagement with an underlying door section 17. Each wedge element 20, extending below the lower end of its respective door section 17, engages the upper end portion of the underlying door section 17, and cooperates with its adjacent tongue element 19 to hold the upper end portion of the underlying door section 17 in sealing engagement with the stop flanges 13.

When closing the silo, the lowermost door section 17 is first placed in the door frame 6 at the bottom thereof. Thereafter, a second door section 17 is inserted thereabove, the wedge element 20 of the second door section 17 and tongue 19 thereof forcing the upper end portion of the lowermost door section inwardly against the stop flanges 13. Thereafter, succeeding door sections 17 are placed in the door frame 6 in like manner until the entire opening is closed. In view of the fact that the doors 17 do not engage the inner wall surface of the silo wall 2, they may be put into place before, during or after filling of the silo. In removing silage from the silo 1, the door sections 17 are removed from the upper most one thereof downwardly, and as many door sections 17 may be removed at one time as desired, according to the amount of silage to be unloaded through the opening 5. Each door section 17 is provided with a hook element 22 pivotally mounted thereon by a bolt or screw 23 to aid in the installation or removal of the door sec tions 17. When the door sections 17 are removed, the hook element 22 is utilized to suspend the removed door section from an adjacent one of the hoops or bands 4 in an out-of-the-way position at either side of the door opening 5. Mounting of the door sections 17 against the outer sides of the stop flanges 13 eliminates the necessity of climbing into the silo during the unloading period when a mechanical unloading device, not shown, is used. The door sections 17 are of such length, and the vertical spacing between the transverse frame members 8 is such, that the members 8 provide the rungs of a ladder for each climbing to the upper end of the silo wall 2. It will be further noted that the door sections 17 may be easily removed from engagement with the stop flanges 18 even during cold winter months when the silage within the silo is frozen; and, if it is desired to unload the entire silo at one time, all of the door sections may be removed to enable the discharge of silage outwardly through the continuous opening 5 by the descending discharge chute of a mechanical unloader, as it works its way downwardly within the silo. Thus, the silo may be either partially or fully unloaded, without interruption.

While I have shown and described one embodiment of door sections, stop members therefor, and locking means for the door sections, it will be appreciated that all thereof are capable of modification within the scope of the invention, as defined in the claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A continuous door system for a silo including a peripheral wall having inner and outer wall surfaces and defining an opening therethrough extending for the greater portion of the height of said peripheral wall, said door system comprising:

(a) a door frame including:

(1) a pair of elongated laterally spaced vertical side frame members adapted to be secured to said peripheral wall at laterally opposite sides of said opening and having inner and outer side edges,

(2) stop members projecting transversely from each of said side frame members toward the opposite side frame member adjacent said inner edges of the side frame members,

(3) and a plurality of vertically spaced horizontally disposed cross frame members extending between said side frame members and secured thereto in outwardly spaced relation to said stop members;

(b) a plurality of generally rectangular door sections having upper and lower ends and opposite side edge portions and freely movable intermediate said side frame members toward and away from superposed end-to-end abutting engagement between said cross frame members and said stop members, said stop members engaging said door sections to positively limit movement of said door sections inwardly of said opening;

(c) and locking means operatively engaging said door frame and said door sections to releasably hold said door sections in engagement with said stop members.

2. The continuous door system defined in claim 1 in which said stop members comprise a pair of stop flanges one on each of said side frame members and extending longitudinally of its respective side frame member for engagement with said side edge portions of the door sections.

3. The continuous door system defined in claim 1 in which said locking means comprises a plurality of locking elements interposed between said cross frame members and adjacent portions of said door sections.

4. The continuous door system defined in claim 3 in which each of said cross frame members comprises a bar having a pair of angularly spaced longitudinally extending faces converging inwardly toward said stop members and defining a corner edge, said locking elements comprising wedges having downwardly converging opposite sides engaging said door sections and corner edges respectively.

5. The continuous door system defined in claim 3 in which the upper end of each door section and the lower adjoining end of an immediately overlying door section are disposed substantially at a level with an adjacent one of said cross frame members, each locking element having a portion overlapping an adjacent pair of said door sections at said adjoining ends thereof.

6. The continuous door system defined in claim 5 in which said locking elements comprise wedges having downwardly converging opposite sides engaging respective ones of said door sections and cross frame members.

7. The continuous door system defined in claim 6 in which each of said wedges is rigidly secured to a different one of said door sections adjacent the lower end and projects downwardly therefrom to overlapping engage and immediately underlying door section adjacent the upper end thereof.

8. A continuous door system for a silo including a peripheral wall having inner and outer wall surfaces and defining an opening therethrough extending for the greater portion of the height of said peripheral wall, said door system comprising:

(a) a door frame including:

( 1) a pair of elongated laterally spaced vertical side frame members adapted to be secured to said peripheral wall at laterally opposite sides of said opening and having inner and outer side portions disposed adjacent said inner and outer wall surfaces respectively,

(2) a pair of stop flanges projecting laterally toward each other from each of said side frame members adjacent said inner portions thereof and extending longitudinally of said side frame members,

(3) and a plurality of vertically spaced horizontally disposed cross frame members extending between said side frame members and secured thereto in outwardly spaced relation to said flanges;

(b) a plurality of generally rectangular door sections having upper and lower ends and opposite side edge portions and freely movable intermediate said side frame members toward and away from superposed end-to-end abutting engagement between said cross frame members and said stop flanges, said stop flanges engaging said side edge portions to positively limit movement of said door sections inwardly of said opening and providing a seal between said side edge portions and the interior of the silo;

(c) and wedge elements on said door sections engaging said cross frame members to hold said door sections in sealing engagement with said flanges responsive to movement of said door sections into endto-end abutting engagement.

9. The door system defined in claim 8 in which said upper and lower ends of the door sections are each formed to provide portions which overlap cooperating portions of the adjacent ends of adjacent door sections when said door sections are moved into end-to-end engagement, whereby to effect a seal between adjacent door sections.

10. The door system defined in claim 8 characterized by hook elements one each pivotally mounted on a different one of said door sections intermediate the upper and lower ends thereof for raising said doors out of said endto-end engagement and suspending the same from the silo adjacent said opening.

11. The door system defined in claim 8 in which said upper and lower ends of the door sections are disposed substantially at a level each with a different one of said cross frame members when said door sections are dis- 6 posed in said abutting engagement, each of said wedge elements being downwardly tapered and extending below the lower end of its respective door section to overlappingly engage an underlying door section adjacent the upper end thereof.

12. The door system defined in claim 11 in which said upper and lower ends of the door sections are rabbeted to provide tongue elements adjacent ones of which cooperate to provide a shiplap connection between adjacent door sections.

13. The door system defined in claim 8 in which each of said cross frame members comprises a length of angle iron welded at its opposite ends to said side frame members, said angle iron having angularly displaced flanges cooperating to define a corner edge extending longitudinally thereof, said cross frame members being so disposed that the corner edges thereof are directed inwardly toward said stop flanges and door sections, said wedge elements engaging said corner edges.

14. The door system defined in claim 13 in which each of said side frame members defines a plurality of longitudinally spaced silo band receiving openings therethrough laterally outwardly of and substantially at the level of said cross frame members.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,232,604 7/1917 Quick 52248X 1,371,858 3/1921 Campbell 49464 1,885,013 10/1932 Hegnes 52l96 2,566,483 9/ 1951 Coulter 49464 2,834,063 5/ 1958 Rutten 52248X 3,154,819 11/1964 Walter 49464X DAVID J. WILLIAMOWSKY, Primary Examiner P. C. KANNAN, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 49465; s2 24s 

